Saturday, November 29, 2014

Oh, Skeindalous! Oh, Ron! I think you
have probably sold me the Tokyo Shawl. After all, if I keep on
knitting steadily forward as at present, I will (I think) be clear of
present responsibilities by the end of February or so. That's not too
far away. I do want to attempt a Fair Isle vest, and start the Queen
Ring, but...

A substantial number of the
Tokyo-shawl-knitters on Ravelry, write about it in Japanese. That's
an added inducement, if one were needed.

But there's also the annual danger that
Scotland might win the Calcutta Cup and I'd have to knit a
commemorative sweater – or two, this time, for the little boys.
It's not terribly likely to happen, as the match will be played in
London, and Scotland haven't won there since Late Forty-Eight (not an
historical statement, you can look it up if you're interested, but a
quotation from Guys and Dolls). But Scotland have been playing with a
new spring in their step recently, and England haven't been all that
sharp, so it's possible.

The match is on March 11 – too late,
I hope, to incorporate the cup in either of my current projects.
Hellie, an Englishwoman, wouldn't want it in her bridal veil anyway,
but Archie, at a rugby-loving school, might not mind having it in a
very inconspicuous place such as one of those reverse-side hems.

Yesterday went well – another two
scallops on the edging of the Bridal Shawl, without further disaster.
That hole from Thursday evening is still there, still mysterious, and
still, apparently, secure. I finished the third skein (of 12) on
Archie's sweater. I did wind another – the fifth – and will
continue to alternate it with the fourth. The trouble with the fourth
is that, although the colour is fine, there isn't as much undyed
near-white as elsewhere, the quality that gives a madelinetosh fabric
such wonderful life.

Non-knit

I did get my order in yesterday for a new
Resident's Parking Permit – I'm sure I wouldn't have done it if I
hadn't promised you guys. The to-do list is every bit as long, but
for a moment or two, less terrifying. If we get the Disabled Parking
Badge we applied for earlier this week, we will no longer need to pay
the hefty annual fee for Resident's Parking.

But today I leave the to-do list behind
and go walking. I got a letter from the dr yesterday saying that my
bone density isn't too bad, I don't need to go back to taking those
weekly pills, but I should eat calcium and go in for “weight-bearing
exercise”. Does that mean walking? I bought myself some Dunsyre
Blue cheese, for the calcium.

6 comments:

Yes walking is weight-bearing exercise, and go for the cheese - it is the tastiest form that calcium can take! Just don't imagine that milk can help, unless it has it's full quota of cream. You need the vitamin D as well, and that is in the fat.

Broccoli and kale (and other greens) are good sources along with tinned fish (including the bones) and blackstrap molasses (used in deserts). An easy and calcium-rich supper dish might be salmon fishcakes (made with tinned salmon, bones and all) served with lightly cooked broccoli or kale. You could make the fishcakes in bulk and freeze some.

..and I should have said that in the case of calcium fresh is not always best for salmon, sardines, etc as you need to eat the bones which are softened by the canning process rendering them palatable when mixed in with other things......

Jean, have you considered buying the shawl kit from Sommerfuglen in Copenhagen or maybe a German company? The dollar price in your link is higher than what Sommerfuglen charges. The shawl is really beautiful, and the combination of alpaca and a wool single would make a nice fabric both to knit and to wear.Best, Inge